Touya Kinomoto
/Image Gallery | box color = darkblue | font color = white |likes = Chemistry, soccer, teasing Sakura|dislikes = Fried tofu, hyperactive people, Syaoran Li}} Touya Kinomoto (木之本 桃矢, Kinomoto Tōya) is a fictional character in CLAMP's anime and manga series Cardcaptor Sakura. He is Sakura's older brother, his best friend is Yukito Tsukishiro. His birthday is on February 29th, which makes him a leap year baby, a person that can only "properly" celebrate their birthday once every four years. His blood type is O. Appearance Touya is a very tall, well-built, and strikingly handsome young man with tanned skin, dark brown hair parted on the left side, and dark brown eyes. He is usually seen in Seijou high school uniform, but occasionally has also been seen in casual clothes. Personality He is similar to his father who is also good at cooking, kind, athletic and helps with house work. Like Yukito, he is also very popular with the girls. In episode 14, the high school girls wonder why he doesn't have any girlfriend and rejects any girls who confess to him. Touya holds the belief that as Sakura's older brother, he is the only person entitled to make fun of her, a belief that his best friend Yukito refers to as a "sister complex." However, he is also caring of her, which leads him to feel suspicious of Syaoran Li. Though Syaoran and Sakura eventually stop fighting, Touya continues to dislike Syaoran when he becomes Sakura's friend, knowing that Syaoran will eventually take Sakura away from him. However he begins to like Syaoran because he is always helping Sakura. Which he reveals when he states that if there was anyone that Sakura wanted to be with to be by her side he wanted it to be Syaoran. He is a perceptive young man and knows what Sakura has been up to despite Sakura's attempts to keep it a secret, though he pretends not to. Sakura thinks it's impossible that he knows already because he would tease her about it. Touya seems to be a loner in personality. His only two friends appear to be Kaho Mizuki and Yukito and he is normally only seen socializing with the latter. Plot Clow Card Arc Touya was born with some magical ability, allowing him to see spirits (including the one of his late mother). His magical ability is also what helps him sense when Sakura is in danger or when she is doing other "magical" things (which enables him to follow her). This ability, however is what led to Sakura's fear of ghosts whenever he would tell her about the apparitions he saw. Touya's magical ability also enables him to sense the difference between living and non-living beings; hence Kero dislikes spending time around him as he fears Touya suspects he is more than a mere plush toy. He is often working, and a running gag in the series involves Sakura and Yukito running into him while he's at work, which can happen virtually anywhere; it is later shown that the reason for his many jobs is so he can pay for college on his own. It is also implied that the reason for him bumping into Sakura all the time was not just mere coincidence but may sometimes have been deliberate on his part. He was following her in case she needed protection from any danger; one very notable instance of this occurs in 'Sakura's Dizzy Fever Day', when Sakura stubbornly attended school to help her classmates out with a project despite her suffering from a bad fever. Touya immediately senses that his sister is in trouble and actually leaves his school, arriving at Sakura's school just in time to catch Sakura as her fever causes her to pass out; he then proceeds to take her home himself. In the first few episodes of the anime, a running gag was Sakura purposely stepping on his foot when he mocks her. Later on in the series when this gag is attempted again, Touya often moves his foot out of the way, causing Sakura to feel the effects of the impact instead. The manga uses this same gag in a slightly different way, for, after he gives his power away to save Yue's (and therefore, Yukito's) life, Sakura is surprised to see that Touya does not foresee her attempt to kick him, and so does not get himself out of the line of fire. Sakura Card Arc prior to her death.]] In the Sakura Cards arc, Touya constantly attempts to tell Yukito he "knows his secret" (referring to Yue). Touya eventually gives up his magical abilities in order to keep Yukito alive. Yukito's alter-ego of sorts Yue, was being weakened from a lack of supporting magic after Sakura became Master of the Clow. Sakura's magic was not strong enough to sustain Yue's existence, and if Yue disappeared so would Yukito. Whenever Touya tried to make this known to Yukito he was interrupted by Nakuru Akizuki (Ruby Moon). Touya was more than willing to give up his magic to save Yukito, but he knew that doing so came at another cost: losing the ability to sense when Sakura was in danger. Therefore, Touya made a deal with Yue, that Yue would promise he would protect Sakura with all of his power. However, when Yue responds that "There's no need to promise" and says the he would do anything to protect Sakura, Touya adds that Yue promise to protect himself as well, since if he were to be injured or killed Yukito would die too. Relationships Yukito Tsukishiro Yukito is Touya's best friend from high school and romantic interest. Throughout the series Touya and Yukito's closeness and love for each other is frequently displayed. Touya gives Yue his powers in order to save Yukito's life. Eventually Yukito openly admits his love for Touya to Sakura after Touya saves Yukito's life, notably calling Touya his "number one". In the North-American Cardcaptors ''adaptation, all overt references to Yukito's homosexual relationship with Touya were removed, due to censorship. Most of their interactions were left unchanged in later English translations of both the anime and manga. Kaho Mizuki Touya briefly dated Kaho Mizuki for a year starting in 8th grade (she was his student teacher), but they broke up when she decided to move to England to pursue her career. She told him he "should not grieve over that, for she would be back, and by those days, both of them would have other love interests.". After returning, she treats him affectionately, but more as a friend and former boyfriend. Sakura Kinomoto Touya enjoyed frequently teasing and making fun of his little sister. However, he did care about her a lot and was quick to defend Sakura when she was attacked by Syaoran in episode 8. He discovers the truth about Sakura being a Cardcaptor but doesn't let on about it and he tries his best to help Sakura when he can. Sakura also cares for her brother, for example when he got hurt by the Mirror card. Syaoran Li Touya initially disliked Syaoran because Syaoran confronted Sakura over her cards, while not being aware the issue was the cards. However, even after Sakura and Syaoran became friends, he still harbored negative sentiment towards Syaoran because he knew that Syaoran would eventually "take" Sakura away from him. Their interactions appears slightly improved in Clear Card, though Touya still appears to feel that Syaoran will "take" Sakura; but he treats Syaoran with more respect, leaving him and Sakura mostly alone during Sakura and Syaoran's "date" at the aquarium (in the anime), while still keeping a watchful eye over them. The Mirror Touya met the Mirror Card in episode 25, where she was disguised as his sister. She injures Touya by causing him to fall from a cliff in woods. Later, realizing that she went too far, she feels guilty, and apologizes to him before being sealed by Sakura. When Sakura went to investigate the mysterious fog, the Mirror met Touya again, disguised as his sister, but he saw through her magic and recognized her. She asks Touya for forgiveness, which Touya accepts, and promised to keep in secret; for he doesn't want her tell his sister for he knows her activity capturing escaped Clow Cards from earlier on (though he doesn't fully understand the situation, or know that they're Clow Cards; just that they're magic). He seems to be good friends with the Mirror and treats her as a normal girl. The Mirror is very fond of him as well. In episode 61, Touya gives the Mirror a Christmas gift (also as thanks for taking good care of his sister), a long green ribbon, which she happily accepts. The green ribbon would later appear in her Card design when she returns to Sakura Card form. Nakuru Akizuki Touya was frequently annoyed by Nakuru's constant displays of affection towards him. Having magical powers, he was quickly able to deduce what she really was, though he didn't fully understand the situation. She often butts in whenever Touya tries to tell Yukito that she is actually inhuman, though towards the end of the series she eventually leaves them alone. By Clear Card, Nakuru appears more concerned about everything going on with Sakura. Powers and Abilities '''Spiritual Powers:' At a young age, Touya discovered that he possessed the rare magical ability of psychically connecting with spirits, as well as the immaterial spirit world itself - something which, so far, even Sakura was unable to achieve despite her strong magical powers. Examples of other powers he derived from this province are: * Spiritual Awareness: Touya possessed a heightened awareness of the paranormal, which enabled him to see entities that are normally invisible to other human beings. Hence, he was able to see the spirit of his late mother. * Mediumship: Touya had the ability to communicate with spirits and those who are in the afterlife, as demonstrated by how he spoke with the spirit of his late mother when she visited their family. * Shamanism: '''Touya had the ability to perceive and contact the spiritual world, as demonstrated by how he sensed that the cherry blossom tree at the Tsukimine Shrine was actually a literal supernatural entity. * '''Divine Communication: Touya had the ability to communicate with a deity, as demonstrated by how he once spoke to the cherry blossom tree at the Tsukimine Shrine. Extrasensory Perception: Touya also possessed the ability to acquire information by means independent of any known senses or previous experience. This supernatural ability of his was shown to be particularly powerful, as shown by how even Eriol once had to take precautions to prevent Touya from sensing the truth about him. Examples of other powers he derived from this province are: * Danger Intuition: Touya had the ability to detect impending threats, which enabled him to sense whenever Sakura is in danger, or when other supernatural events are occurring. * Soul and Aura Reading: Touya had the ability to see, read, and sense the souls and auras of others. Hence, he was always able to accurately detect when the Mirror card was posing as Sakura, and that Yukito was actually Yue. Limited Power Negation (possibly): It is possible that Touya possessed the power to nullify the powers of others - in Episode 3, he saved a penguin by dispersing the whirlpool caused by the Watery card. Expert Martial Artist: Touya was once mentioned by his father, Fujitaka, to be a first-level black belt in karate. New Magical Powers: After he sacrificed his supernatural powers to save Yukito's life, he became an ordinary human being. However, it has been revealed in the last chapter of Clear Card Arc that he is gradually regaining his magic and seems to be developing new and greater abilities that he shall reveal until the time is right. Appearances in Other Media Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle In ''Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle'', Touya is not only the older brother of Sakura but also the King of the Kingdom of Clow. The former king, Touya and Sakura's (adopted) father, is Clow Reed. However, it is later revealed that Touya's true parents are Nadeshiko Nadeshiko and Fujitaka, not Clow. Like his Cardcaptor Sakura counterpart, he dislikes Syaoran and refers to him as a brat. His reasons are similar; from the predictions of the High Priest of Clow (who is Yukito, his close friend and confidante) he knows that Sakura and Syaoran are meant to be together and their destinies are linked. Additionally, Touya had initially felt that Syaoran possessed a rather unsettling presence within him and confronted his father about it, though Touya later admits that the feeling went away as Syaoran opened up to Sakura. Later on, it is revealed that "Syaoran" had also met with Touya, and had been treated similarly to his Clone counterpart. Another incarnation of Touya appears with Yukito in the Hanshin Republic, where he and Yukito are waiters at a local restaurant. In the anime, Tsubasa Chronicle, he appears again in the Ōto Country where he and Yukito are patrons in the café run by Syaoran and the others as well as in two filler episodes. Kobato Touya is seen on Drop 5, and in the anime episode 22; both times with Fujimoto on a mid-time job. In the manga, he is seen wearing a bunny costume (similar to the one he used on Cardcaptors Sakura: The Sealed Card and in Usagi-san from Wish) in the Green Drugstore (originally from Legal Drug). In the anime he is seen talking with Fujimoto in the dressing rooms of Piffle Pizza (a company that had appeared on several CLAMP works, like Cardcaptor Sakura itself, but being more prominent in Suki Dakara Suki and Angelic Layer). Cardcaptors His name is changed to Tori Avalon in this English version. His personality mostly remains unchanged in that he still enjoys teasing Sakura though he calls her "squirt" and "dinosaur", similar to Touya's "kaiju" (monster). Trivia * Touya and Yukito are one of Clamp's "Soul Pairs" or soulmate pairs (a common theme in their stories). They are each other's special person and are always together when they appear in other works by Clamp, including in Tsubasa. * Sakura's confirmed by her voice actress, Sakura Tange, and the Clear Card app to be 13 at the start of Clear Card Arc; despite her age being conflicting with a real-world Japanese school system. This age would conflict with not only her own, but everyone else's as well, meaning Touya would be 17 instead of 16 earlier on in the series. ** When he dated Kaho, Kaho was his student teacher; not yet a professional teacher (she would not meet Eriol until she was later in college in England). Touya dated her before she left for college in England, only just beginning seeing her in 8th grade. Due to the aforementioned "conflicting age" issue, he would be a year older than a real-world system during this point of the "timeline" as well. Since Japanese students typically leave high school and later begin college at age 18 or around there; that would apply to a pre college-aged Kaho as well; thus, their age difference is unlikely to be more than 4-5 years. ** If Kaho was not yet 20, she also would have not yet reached the "age of adulthood" (20 in Japan), thus technically being considered a minor during the time. ** Despite all of this, Kaho's age is not confirmed exactly during this point of the series; only Touya being in 8th grade around that age at the very start is confirmed. It might be of note that she and Touya both share birthdays in February, which occur towards the end of a typical Japanese school year (the Japanese school year begins in April and ends with the next year's March''.) ** Similarly to the "conflicting age" issue, Touya confirms he is in college during Clear Card Arc Episode 03. Because he was previously in high school during the previous series, he would have just started college by Clear Card Arc. ** As early as Chapter 11, he states he is 10 years old when Sakura is 3, which would make their age difference about the difference in that length of time. This fact also lining up with Touya being in college in Clear Card Arc. He states this when he speaks to Yukito about how Sakura became scared of ghosts ** It is also confirmed by the manga that Nadeshiko died three years after Sakura was born. * In the anime, like Syaoran in the ''Sleeping Beauty play, Touya plays the lead female character in his high school's Cinderella play. * Touya's "kaijuu" (monster) nickname for Sakura in Cardcaptor Sakura is reused in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles. * Touya's running gag about his part-time jobs is retained in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles as he appears as a waiter in a restaurant where Syaoran and company eat in the Hanshin Republic. * The first kanji of Touya's given name (桃) means peach, and peach blossoms are one of his mother's two favorite flowers; the other being cherry blossoms, sakura (桜). * In the Greek Dub, Touya's name was changed to Justin. *He is voiced by Tomokazu Seki in Cardcaptor Sakura and by Shin'ichiro Miki in Tsubasa Chronicle. In Cardcaptors, he is voiced by Tony Sampson, and by Kirk Thornton in The Sealed Card movie. He is voiced by Eric Vale in the English dubbed version of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle *His Japanese voice actor from Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, Shin'ichiro Miki, also voices Charizard from the Pokémon ''anime. *His English voice actor from the second ''Cardcaptor Sakura movie, Kirk Thornton, is also the current voice actor of Shadow the Hedgehog from the Sonic the Hedgehog series since Sonic Colors for the Nintendo Wii and DS to the present releases. Navigation es: Touya Kinomoto Category:Characters Category:Male characters